


Reunion of Souls

by AcesOfSpade



Series: Canon Remix [3]
Category: Doctor Who
Genre: Episode AU: s02e03 School Reunion, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-28
Updated: 2016-01-28
Packaged: 2018-05-16 22:23:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5843236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AcesOfSpade/pseuds/AcesOfSpade
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Doctor and his companion set up a sort of undercover operation at Deffery Vale school to investigate strange occurrences. Sarah Jane Smith, and her children Harold and Josephine, had a similar idea.</p>
<p>When the two groups meet each other, tempers flare, jealousy rears its head, and confessions are made.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reunion of Souls

**Author's Note:**

> I just.... I don't even fucking know. I've had these two OCs for years now, and I've never really written any fics for them, they've just been for RPs. Well, here's a fic about them and Sarah Jane set during _School Reunion_ , because what better time would there be for this kind of confession? Also, I realize it's mostly dialogue straight from the episode itself, but I threw in some of my own bits and pieces.

The sun was bright in the sky as they arrived at Deffrey Vale. Shining high in the mid-morning sky, it was a little distracting to them. They had a mission, an investigative mission, and the sun shouldn't bother them all that much.

 

Once they were inside they reported for their 'jobs', trying to seem as inconspicuous as possible. She went to the cafeteria, he went to the staff room to pick up his schedule. He was filling in for the physics teacher while she was on vacation.

 

The day settled for a while, as he didn't have a class right away. Once he realized he had less than five minutes to get all the way across the school before his class started, he slipped everything into his briefcase and all but booked it to the physics lab.

 

Arriving just after the bell, he set his briefcase down on the lab bench in front of him and grinned.

 

“Good morning, class. Are we all sitting comfortably?” he asked, sliding his 'brainy specs' back up his nose. Damned things wouldn't stay where they belonged half the time. When he was sure everyone was seated, he scrawled the word 'physics' in large block letters on the whiteboard and underlined it a few times. “So, physics,” he muttered, hands sliding into his pockets. “Physics. Eh? Physics. Phyyyyyyyysics. Physics! Physics. Physics, physics, physics, physics, physics, physics, physics.” Watching the students, the Doctor tried not to chuckle. “I hope one of you is getting all this down,” he joked.

 

“Um, okay, let's see what you know,” the Doctor hummed, wandering around to the front of the lab bench in front of him. “Two identical strips of nylon are charged with static electricity and hung from a string so they can swing freely. What would happen if they were brought near each other?” he asked. One boy raised his hand, looking eager to answer. “You, what's your name?” he asked, pointing to the boy.

 

“Milo,” he answered.

 

“Alright Milo, off you go!” the Doctor said encouragingly.

 

They'd repel each other because they have the same charge.” Milo answered with a small smile.

 

“Correctomundo! A word I have never used before and hopefully will never use again,” the Doctor said, somewhat awkwardly. “Question two: I coil up a thin piece of micro wire and place it in a glass of water. The I turn on the electricity and measure to see if the water's temperature is affected. My question is this: how do I measure the electrical power going through the coil?” he went on, looking for a hand that wasn't Milo's. “Someone else?” he muttered. When no one raised their hands, he relinquished. “Nope...? Okay, Milo, go for it.”

 

“Measure the current and PDs using an ampmeter and a voltmeter,” Milo answered matter-of-factly, as if it were common knowledge. Everyone around Milo looked impressed by his knowledge. Maybe he studied ahead.

 

“Two to Milo!” the Doctor said with a smile. “Right then, Milo, tell me this: true or false, the greater the dampening of the system, the quicker it loses energy to its surroundings.”

 

“False,” Milo said simply. The Doctor tried not to frown. This boy wasn't that old, yet he had knowledge of physics beyond most people his age.

 

“What is non-coding DNA?” the Doctor asked, brows furrowed.

 

“DNA that doesn't code for protein.” Milo answered.

 

“65,915 times 5?” the Doctor went on. Not specifically physics, but now he was testing a theory.

 

“329,915,” Milo answered. The Doctor did actually frown at that, even if it was just slightly. This boy must have a high capacity for learning.

 

“How do you travel faster than light?” the Doctor pressed, wanting to test this out more before the bell rang.

 

“By opening a quantum tunnel with an FTL factor of 36.7,” Milo answered after barely a few seconds' thought.

 

The Doctor's frown deepened, but he was unable to continue, as the bell had rung to signify lunch.

 

Collecting his things, the Doctor headed to the cafeteria for lunch. Most of the teachers ate in the staff room, but the Doctor wanted to tease his companion a little.

 

Standing in the lunch line, the Doctor slid a tray down the line as the lunch ladies served him. When he came across his companion, she gave him the dirtiest look she could muster as she placed a scoop of mashed potatoes on his tray. The Doctor just chuckled, moving along.

 

He found a table to sit at that didn't have any students, beginning to eat his lunch. He pierced one of the fries with his fork, nibbling on the end of it before pulling it back. It tasted funny.

 

Soon after, his companion wandered over with a cloth to wipe down the table.

 

“Two days,” she muttered in annoyance.

 

Deciding to poke fun, the Doctor pointed his fork towards a gravy stain on the table. “Sorry, could you just... there's a bit of gravy,” he said, a smile tugging at his lips. His companion went to wipe it away, only to get a head shake from the Doctor. “No, no, just there,” he said, pointing closer to the stain. She finally got it wiped up, much to her own annoyance.

 

“Two days we've been here,” she tried again, annoyed with the Doctor.

 

“Blame your boyfriend, he's the one who put us onto this. And he was right. Boy in class this morning, got a knowledge way beyond planet Earth,” the Doctor told her, rolling his eyes.

 

“You eating those chips?” she asked, gesturing to the fries on his tray. The Doctor shook his head, pushing the tray towards her.

 

“Yeah, they're a bit... different,” the Doctor said. His companion picks one up off the tray and takes a bite, seemingly pleased with the taste.

 

“I think they're gorgeous. Wish I had school dinners like this,” she sighed, sitting down at the table with the Doctor.

 

“Very well behaved, this place,” the Doctor noted oddly, surveying the room as he spoke.

 

“Mm,” his companion nodded, still eating the fries.

 

“IIthought there'd be happy-slapping hoodies. Happy-slapping hoodies with ASBOs. Happy-slapping hoodies with ASBOs and ringtones,” he went on with a slight frown.

 

His companion just rolled her eyes, eating another fry. One of the other lunch ladies approached the table, looking quite angry at his companion.

 

“You are not permitted to leave your station during a sitting,” the lunch lady said, crossing her arms over her chest.

 

“I was just talking to this teacher,” the companion said, to which the Doctor gave a wave. “He doesn't like the chips.”

 

The lunch lady looked affronted, as if someone had insulted her child. “The menu was specifically designed by the headmaster to improve concentration and performance,” she said shortly. “Now get back to work.”

 

The companion scurried off, back to the lunch line. The Doctor just chuckled, looking around the room. He noticed a teacher moving to talk to a table of students, turning an ear to them.

 

“Melissa, you'll be joining my class for the next period. Milo has... failed me, so it's about time we move you up to the top class,” the teacher said to one of the students. That caused the Doctor to frown. Was he talking about the Milo that had been in the physics classroom? If so, how had he failed the teacher of the top class in the school? He was brilliant!

 

Turning to one of the other students, the only one with a homemade lunch, the teacher frowned. “Kenny, not eating the chips?” he asked with a raised brow.

 

“I'm not allowed,” Kenny sighed, looking at his sandwich.

 

The teacher moved on, looking to the other student. “Luke, extra class, now.”

 

With that, the students went off to where they had been told to go, the bell ringing a few moments later. The Doctor collected his stuff and headed out of the cafeteria.

* * *

Elsewhere in the school, the headmaster of the school was showing three people around the campus. The eldest one held a notepad, the other two with little recording devices. The three all had the same dark chocolate brown hair, and the two younger ones looked like twins.

 

“My improvements aren't confined to the classroom. Oh, no, no, no, no, no. We've introduced a new policy. School dinners are absolutely free. But compulsory. Do try the chips,” the headmaster said to the trio.

 

The two younger members of the trio shared a look. Neither particularly liked fries, but maybe these ones would be decent.

 

“I'd love to, thank you,” the older woman smiled. “And it's got to be said, the transformation you've brought about is amazing. I mean, maybe you're working the children a little too hard now and then...” she trailed off, leaving her statement there. “But I think good results, they're more important than anything.”

 

The two younger members tried not to scoff. She was lying straight through her teeth, and they knew it. However, she hadn't gotten where she was through honestly. Every journalist has their ways, after all.

 

“You're a woman of vision, Miss Smith,” the headmaster said with a small chuckle.

 

“Oh, I can see everything, Mr. Finch. Quite clearly,” Miss Smith said, a hidden knowledge in her voice only the other two with her picked up on.

* * *

Mr. Finch led the trio to the staff room, where most of the teachers were gathered. The Doctor was there, talking with one of the other teachers about the last physics teacher at the school. He was interrupted by Mr. Finch, who cleared his throat.

 

“Excuse me, colleagues. A moment of your time?” he said, gesturing to the trio. “I'd like to introduce you to Sarah Jane Smith, and her children Harold and Josephine,” he said. “They're journalists, writing about the school for the Sunday Times.”

 

The Doctor was frozen, transfixed on the woman in the middle of the group. She hadn't changed much since he last saw her, she was still so, so beautiful. The other two with her, her children, they reminded him of someone. Someone he used to know. A twist settled in his gut, a twist of uncertainty.

 

“I thought it may be useful for them to get a 'view from the trenches', so to speak,” Finch went on.

 

Sarah Jane and her children went to mingle among the staff, Sarah Jane wandering over to the Doctor. He seemed to be staring, which was quite odd. Why would he be staring?

 

“Hello,” she greeted kindly, a small smile on her lips.

 

“I should think so...” the Doctor muttered, voice far-off and distant.

 

“And you are...?” Sarah Jane asked, nearly raising her brow at his odd behaviour.

 

“Uh, Smith. John Smith,” he said distractedly. He couldn't stop staring at her. She was still so beautiful, still so _Sarah_. She was probably here for the same reason he was.

 

“John Smith? I used to have a friend that went by that name,” Sarah Jane said fondly.

 

“Well, it's a common name,” the Doctor said, almost too quickly. He needed to cover his tracks. If she knew who he was... it wouldn't end very well.

 

“He was a very uncommon man,” she muttered, remembering her old friend with the daft curls and the ridiculous scarf. “Nice to meet you,” she added, holding out her hand.

 

“Nice to meet you! Very nice. More than nice, brilliant,” the Doctor rambled, shaking her hand. He didn't want to let go, but if he lingered, and she realized his body was colder than what was normal...

 

“So, have you worked here long?” Sarah Jane asked, brushing off his odd behaviour.

 

“This is only my second day,” the Doctor admitted, rubbing the back of his neck.

 

“Oh, you're new then?” Sarah Jane enquired, earning a nod. “So, what do you think of the school? I mean, this new curriculum?” she asked, flipping to a new page in notebook to take notes. When he didn't say anything for a few moments, she went on.”So many children getting sick. That doesn't strike you as odd?”

 

“You don't sound like someone just doing a profile,” the Doctor muttered, not at all unkindly. He could never be unkind to his Sarah.

 

“Well, there's no harm in investigating while we're here,” Sarah Jane said, motioning for her children to come over as the bell rang. They came over, and Sarah Jane waved goodbye to the Doctor as they left.

 

“Good for you,” he muttered when they were out of earshot. “Oh, good for you, Sarah Jane Smith.”

* * *

That night, the sound of a creaking fire exit could be heard through the halls of the empty school. The Doctor, his companion, and his companion's boyfriend stepped through the door, closing it quickly.

 

Coincidentally, in the nearest classroom, the sound of a window being opened rang out. Three figures, one after the other, climbed in through the window, the last one closing it and locking it behind them.

 

“It's so weird,” the Doctor's companion said. “Seeing school at night, it feels wrong.”

 

As they walked through the corridor, guided by the Doctor's flashlight, she spoke again.”When I was little, I used to think the teachers slept at school.”

 

“All right, team. Oh, I hate people who say 'team'. Um... 'gang'. Um... 'comrades'. Uh... anyway, Rose, go to the kitchen and get a sample of that oil. Mickey, the new staff are all Maths teachers, go and check out the Maths department. I'm gonna look in Finch's office. Be back here in ten minutes,” the Doctor directed, only half-listening to Rose's anecdote. Once he was finished speaking, he took off upstairs.

 

Upstairs, Josephine Smith was kneeling in front of Finch's office, bobby pins in hand as she tried to pick the lock. Her brother and mother stood watch behind her, just in case. Just before she got the lock open, a loud 'bang', followed by a screech pierced the silence. She abandoned her task when the noises got louder, grabbing her mother and brother and backing down the hall to a closet. She opened it, shoving both of them inside before entering herself. Didn't need anyone getting messed upby some alien, now did she?

 

Of course, she had to pick that closet in particular. When Sarah Jane turned to look around the space, she froze, not believing what she was seeing. Standing tall in front of her, illuminated by horribly dark lights, was the TARDIS. That old blue box, the Doctor's favourite ship. She nearly dropped her flashlight, turning around and leaving the closet. If the TARDIS was here, it meant the Doctor was too, and she had words for him. Many, many words.

 

The twins followed behind their mother, but it didn't take long to find the person she was searching for. He happened to be looking for Finch's office as well. When he saw Sarah Jane and her children approach, he stood, sliding on hand into his pocket.

 

“Hello, Sarah Jane,” he muttered, noting their path from the closet where he'd hidden the TARDIS. Sure, he'd put up the perception filter, but the Old Girl liked to drop her own shields when she saw fit.

 

“It's you...” Sarah Jane muttered in disbelief. “Oh Doctor, you've regenerated.”

 

The twins' eyes widened. This was the Doctor? The man Mum told fond stories of?

 

“Half a dozen times since we last met,” the Doctor said softly. They'd last met when he was in his fifth body, in the Death Zone. It wasn't a happy reunion, but he had gotten to be with his Sarah Jane.

 

“You look... incredible,” Sarah Jane muttered, taking a few steps towards the Doctor tentatively.

 

“So do you,” the Doctor responded. He meant it, too. She looked amazing as ever.

 

“I got old,” Sarah Jane scoffed sadly. She had gotten old, and the Doctor was younger than she'd ever seen him. It hurt, it really did. “What are you doing here?” she asked softly. The twins moved to stand on either side of their mother to comfort her.

 

“Well, UFO sightings. School gets record results. I couldn't resist. What about you?” the Doctor responded. He still couldn't shake the idea that the twins were familiar to him beyond looking like Sarah Jane. They reminded him of someone else, but he couldn't quite place it.

 

“Same,” Sarah Jane nodded, though her voice was cracking. The next words out of her mouth were wavering, almost breaking. “I thought you must have died. I waited for you, and you didn't come back, and I thought you died.” Her voice almost sounded accusatory behind the wavering, which was completely warranted.

 

“I lived,” the Doctor said softly, “everyone else died.”

 

“What do you mean?” Sarah Jane asked softly, noting the hurt and guilt in those sad brown eyes.

 

“Everyone died, Sarah,” was all the Doctor could manage to say on the matter. Sarah Jane dropped the matter, figuring it was a personal one.

 

“I still can't believe it's you,” she muttered in disbelief, stepping forwards another few steps. The twins stayed where they were, watching their mother closely.

 

Of course, every tender moment with the Doctor got shattered at some point. The shattering this time around came from an almost girlish scream coming from somewhere else in the school. Sarah Jane actually grinned at that, while the twins looked worried.

 

“Now I can,” Sarah Jane chuckled, taking off after the Doctor as he ran. The twins sighed, booking it after their mother to keep up.

 

The source of the scream was none other than Mickey, standing in front of a storage closet. He was surrounded by oddly yellow vacuum-packed rats, looking like someone had hurt him.

 

Rose had made it there just after the others shuddering. “Oh my God, they're _rats_. Vacuum packed rats.”

 

“And you decided to scream?” the Doctor asked Mickey, raising a questioning eyebrow.

 

“It took me by surprise!” Mickey said in his own defence.

 

“Like a little girl?” the Doctor went on. “Nine, maybe ten years old. I'm seeing pigtails, frilly skirt.”

 

“Hello, let's focus,” Harold said, trying to join the conversation.

 

“Exactly what he said,” Rose nodded, glancing at him warily. “There's rats in this school.”

 

“Biology class,” Josephine supplied. “They dissect them,” she added, narrowing her eyes slightly. “Have you even reached that yet?” she wondered aloud.

 

“No one dissects rats in school anymore,” Rose said in a huff. “Where are you two from, the eighties?” she added scathingly, earning a glare from the Doctor and Sarah Jane. The Doctor glared because she was exceedingly rude. Sarah Jane glared because she was exceedingly rude to her daughter.

 

“Moving on,” the Doctor said quickly. Josephine looked the type to punch Rose in the nose, and he didn't need that. “Everything started when Mr. Finch arrived. Why don't we go check his office?”

 

Everyone nodded, and they set off back upstairs. Rose trailed next to the twins and Sarah Jane, unsure of them.

 

“I don't mean to be rude, but who _are_ you people?” Rose asked, very rudely.

 

“Harold Smith,” one twin said.

 

“Josephine Smith,” the other added. “And our mother, Sarah Jane.”

 

“Mum used to travel with the Doctor,” Harold supplied, giving Rose a look.

 

“He's never mentioned anyone to me by that name,” Rose decided to say, nearly crossing her arms over her chest. She refused to believe that anyone else had travelled with the Doctor before her. She had to be the first, right?

 

The Doctor, ever the idiot, decided to weigh in on the conversation. “Sarah Jane? I've mentioned her a few times,” he said, trying to direct the conversation _away_ from where it was going.

 

Rose thought for a moment before shaking her head. “Never,” she repeated.

 

“Not even once?” Sarah Jane muttered, almost sadly. Harold glared at Rose. It was her fault Mum was sad now, and he couldn't stand with that. Harold was protective of his mother and his sister, and it absolutely showed.

 

Sarah Jane and the twins sped up to reach Finch's office faster. Josephine pulled her bobby pins out of the pocket of her tunic to finish what she had started.

 

“Oh, oh, oh. The missus and the ex!” Mickey said, trying to lighten the mood.

 

“Something like that,” the Doctor muttered, causing Mickey to frown. When they caught up, Josephine had gotten the door unlocked and had peered inside.

 

“Maybe the rats were food,” she said, amending her earlier statement about dissection.

 

“Food for what?” Rose asked, silently celebrating that she may have been right.

 

Josephine quickly closed the door, gesturing for everyone to get a move on.”Bat people,” she hissed.

 

They made it outside rather quickly, Mickey and Rose panting in exhaustion. Everyone else seemed perfectly fine after that little mini sprint.

 

“Hey, Doctor?” Josephine called over. “You mentioned new teachers being brought in? How many?”

 

“Finch, seven teachers, four dinner ladies, and a nurse, why?” the Doctor responded curiously.

 

“13. 13 new staff members, 13 bat people,” Joey told him, letting the pieces fall into place.

 

“Ah,” he muttered with a nod. Turning to Rose, he spoke again. “Did you get the oil I asked for?” he asked, holding out a hand for the sample he hoped she had gotten.

 

Rose nodded, pulling a small jar out of her pocket to place in his hand. Once he had it, he turned to head back in side.

“You must be crazy!” Mickey muttered. “You want to go back in there?”

 

“I need the TARDIS so I can analyze the sample,” the Doctor reasoned with a shrug.

 

“Maybe not,” Sarah Jane said, the beginnings of a grin working on her face. “I've got something to show you,” she said, heading away from the school and towards the parking lot. The rest of the group followed behind her.

 

Once they reached Sarah Jane's car, she opened the back of it to reveal a blanket covering a rather large object. When she pulled the blanket away, the Doctor grinned happily.

 

“K9!” he beamed, noticing the exposed and frayed wires. “Rose Tyler, Mickey Smith, allow me to introduce K9! Well, K9 Mark III to be precise.” He was positively _beaming_ at the sight of his old friend. He'd given the dog to Sarah Jane a few years after he left her, her time, and he was pleased to see she still had him.

 

“Why does he look so... disco?” Rose asked, not quite believing that this was anything special to the Doctor.

 

“Oi! I'll have you know that in the year 5000, this was cutting edge!” the Doctor said, almost offended by the comment.”What happened?” he asked, turning to Sarah Jane.

 

“Oh, one day, he just... nothing,” Sarah Jane explained. “Harold was getting him to help with chemistry homework, and he just... stopped.”

 

“Why didn't you try and get him repaired?” the Doctor asked.

 

“The parts weren't easily available,” Harold piped up.

 

“And besides, he could easily rewrite human science with his mechanics,” Josephine added.

 

“We tried all we could, but here he is,” Sarah Jane sighed.

 

“Oh, what's the nasty children done to you?” the Doctor all but cooed, petting K9's head as if he were a proper dog. The twins looked affronted, but said nothing. Maybe he was just teasing.

 

“I think I can fix him,” the Doctor said as he turned away from his loyal pet. “There's a chip shop down the road. We can take him there.”

 

A few minutes later found the group in the chip shop, K9 up on a table as the Doctor worked on him. Sarah Jane sat at the table with him, while the twins sat nearby with glasses of water.

 

“I thought of you, Christmas Day,” Sarah Jane said suddenly. “This Christmas just gone? Great big spaceship overhead. Thought 'bet he's up there'.”

 

“Right on top of it,” the Doctor nodded, picking his sonic up off the table to join two wires.

 

“Did I do something wrong?” Sarah Jane asked quietly. “Because you never came back. You just... dumped me.” She wanted to say something else, the Doctor could tell, but he wouldn't press her if she wasn't willing to share.

 

“I told you, I was called home.” the Doctor said softly. “Humans weren't allowed back then.”

 

“I waited for you,” Sarah Jane whispered, looking at her hands. “I missed you.”

 

The Doctor turned away from his work to give Sarah Jane his full attention. “You didn't need me. You were getting on with your life,” he said softly, placing his hand over top of hers.

 

“You were my life,” Sarah Jane whispered, looking up at him. Her green eyes were watering, tears prickling behind them. Taking a deep breath, she went on. “You know what the most difficult thing was? Coping with what happens next, and with what doesn't happen next. You took me to the furthest reaches of the galaxy, you showed me supernovas, intergalactic battles and then you just dropped me back on Earth. How could anything compare to that?” There were unspoken words, ones she wasn't ready to share yet.

 

“All the things you saw... you want me to apologize for that?” the Doctor asked, brows furrowed. Humans were so confusing sometimes.

 

“No, but we get a taste of the splendour, and then we have to go back,” Sarah Jane said almost bitterly.

 

The Doctor sighed, running his thumb over the back of Sarah Jane's hand. He wished he could've gone back, he truly did, but he just... couldn't.

 

“It wasn't Croydon, by the way,” Sarah Jane commented.

 

“Where was it?” the Doctor muttered, confused. It hadn't been South Croydon? Had he put in the wrong coordinates?

 

“Aberdeen,” Sarah Jane said with a sad chuckle.

 

“That's next to Croydon, isn't it?” the Doctor asked. He was honestly confused. Had he messed up horribly? How far were the two places? Luckily, the Doctor was reprieved by K9 coming back online.

 

“Hello, Master,” K9 said, in that adorable little robot voice that everyone loved.

 

“He recognizes me!” the Doctor cheered. He hadn't seen K9 since the late 70s, but his dog recognized him. He then gestured to Rose for the jar of oil, which he was given with a bitter look that he didn't notice. K9 extended his sensor for the Doctor, who dabbed his finger in the oil to spread on the sensor.

 

“Ex... ex... extract, ana... an... analyzing,” K9 stuttered out.

 

“Look at that man, that's a voice!” Mickey commented, earning a glare form the twins.

 

“Careful,” they said evenly. “That's our dog.”

 

Mickey gave a sheepish look, rubbing the back of his neck. He had a knack for getting in trouble, especially with people older than him.

 

“Confirmation of analysis: substance is Krillitaine Oil,” K9 declared.

 

“They're Krillitaine,” the Doctor muttered.

 

“Is that bad?” Rose asked.

 

“Very bad. Think of how bad things could possibly be, and add another suitcase of bad on top,” the Doctor said, actually very seriously.

 

“What's a Krillitaine?” Josephine piped up from her seat near the window.

 

“The Krillitaine are a composite race. Just like your culture is a mixture of traditions from all other countries, people you've invaded, people you've been invaded by, you've got bits. Bits of Viking, bits of France, bits of whatever... The Krillitaine are the same. An amalgam of the races they've conquered. But they take physical aspects as well, cherry-pick the best bits from the people they destroy. Last time I saw the Krillitaine, they looked exactly like humans, but with really long necks,” the Doctor explained, frowning the entire time.

 

“What are they doing here then?” Rose asked, frowning as well.

 

“The children,” the Doctor realized in horror. “They're doing something with the children.”

 

After that realization, the group was quick to clear out. The Doctor and Rose stayed behind while the other four brought K9 out to the car. Rose wanted to talk to the Doctor.

 

“How many of us have their been, travelling with you?” Rose asked, trying not to get angry or cry.

 

“Does it matter?” the Doctor asked, trying to avoid the subject as much as possible. He didn't like to think about life before the Time War, when he had multiple companions at once and he was _happy_.

 

“Yeah, it does. 'Cause I'd like to know if I'm just the latest in a long line,” Rose huffed, crossing her arms over her chest in defiance.

 

“As opposed to what, exactly?” the Doctor asked, quiet anger in his voice.

 

“You and me, I thought... But I guess I was wrong. You just find strays, you take them in, and you eventually dump them,” Rose said bitterly. “You and Sarah Jane were probably really close, and now, you don't even mention her.”

 

“I don't age. I regenerate. You know that,” the Doctor said, trying to reason with Rose. “Humans, they wither, they decay, they die. Imagine watching that happen to someone you-” he went on, catching himself before he said aloud what he hadn't said in so, so long.

 

“What, Doctor?” Rose asked, pretty sure she knew what he was going to say. _Love. Someone you love._ Had he loved Sarah Jane? From the way he looked at her, the way he tried to comfort her, it was almost obvious how he felt.

 

The Doctor just stared at her, trying to will her to drop the subject. He didn't want to talk about it, he really didn't.

* * *

The next morning, the group met up at the school again. Harold and Josephine were a bit wary of Rose and how she treated their mother, but they'd be there for Mum and the Doctor.

 

“Rose, Josephine, Sarah, you three go to the maths room, see if you can crack open one of the computers. I need to see the hardware,” the Doctor suggested, tossing Josephine his sonic.

 

“Mickey, I need you on surveillance, outside,” he went on, tossing Mickey Sarah Jane's keys. “Don't forget to crack a window,” he said jokingly.

 

“He's metal!” Mickey said, in reference to K9.

 

“I didn't mean for him,” the Doctor joked.

 

“What are you and Harry going to do?” Josephine asked. She was a bit wary of leaving her brother alone with the Doctor. He was bad at keeping things to himself around new people.

 

“We're going to have a talk with Mr. Finch,” the Doctor told her. After that, everyone split, heading their separate ways.

* * *

The trio of women made their way, mostly undetected, to the math classroom that wasn't being used that period. Josephine used the sonic on the door lock to open it. She may not have used a sonic before, but using it didn't seem like rocket science.

 

Once inside the classroom, Josephine handed the sonic to her mother, who ducked under a computer desk to get to work on opening one up. Josephine herself got down there next to her to do some of the physical work, while Rose just sat in one of the chair.

 

After a few tries, Sarah Jane got frustrated with the sonic and handed it to her daughter, standing to turn to Rose.

 

“Rose, may I give you a piece of advice?” she asked, standing near another computer, a few feet from Rose.

 

“I've a feeling you're about to anyway,” Rose grumbled.

 

“I know how intense a relationship with the Doctor can be, and I don't want you to feel like I'm intruding-” she began, only to be cut off.

 

“I don't feel threatened by you, if that's what you mean,” Rose lied, crossing her arms.

 

“Good, because I'm not interested in picking up where we left off,” Sarah Jane went on. “The Doctor leaving was a real eye-opener for me, even if it took me a while to realize it,” she added, glancing towards her daughter under the table.

 

“No? With the big, sad eyes and the robot dog?” Rose said bitingly. At her tone, Josephine had tried to get up from under the table too fast, hitting her head on the bottom of the desk. “What else were you doing last night?”

 

“I was just saying how hard it was, adjusting to life back on Earth,” Sarah Jane said softly, looking away for a moment.

 

“The thing is... when you two met, they'd only just gotten rid of rationing. No wonder all that space stuff was too much for you,” Rose said scathingly, glaring at Sarah Jane.

 

Before Sarah Jane could talk, Josephine was at her side, a look in her eyes that was so angry it reminded Rose of the Doctor's anger.

 

“Look, Rose,” Josephine said, voice devoid of its usual cheer. “I don't know how old you think my Mum is, but this has _got_ to stop. You're being petty, jealous even. This whole 'I thought I was special' routine needs to stop, because it'll get us nowhere in this investigation. You need to listen to my Mum when she says she has no interest in picking up with Da- the Doctor, because she hasn't wanted that since I was 10, and I'm 29,” she snapped, holding back most of her anger. Of course, in the anger she let out, she nearly tripped up. Luckily, she caught herself before she could say anything.

 

Sarah Jane placed a hand on her daughter's arm to try and calm her down. When she got angry, she got scary, and she was probably terrifying poor Rose half to death. The comfort of her mother calmed her, the red colour draining from her pale face.

 

Rose, meanwhile, was processing what she'd just heard with what was probably a stupid look on her face. She'd never had someone snap at her like that before, and she'd never had someone jump to _her_ defence like that. One part of the rant had caught Rose's attention in particular. Had Josephine been about to call the Doctor 'Dad'? The idea set a rock in the bottom of Rose's stomach, one that wouldn't go away. First Sarah Jane, and now the possibility of the Doctor having _children_ with her? It did nothing to ease Rose's nerves.

 

Right then, the Doctor and Harold wandered into the room to check on their progress, only to find Josephine trying to regulate her breathing with Sarah Jane's help, and Rose looking like someone had kicked a puppy.

* * *

While all of that was happening, the Doctor and Harold tracked Finch to the school's swimming pool. They entered the room, standing on the opposite side of the pool as Finch.

 

“Who are you?” the Doctor asked evenly.

 

“My name is Brother Lassa. And you?” Finch, no, Lassa, said.

 

“Harold Smith,” the young man said.

 

“The Doctor,” the other said. “Since when do the Krillitaine have wings?”

 

“It's been our form for nearly ten generations, now. Our ancestors invaded Bessan. The people there had some rather lovely wings. They made a million widows in one day, just imagine,” Lassa said, trying to lighten the mood.

 

“And now you're shaped human,” Harold observed.

 

“A personal favourite, that's all,” Lassa said shortly.

 

“And the others?” the Doctor asked.

 

“My brothers remain bat form. What you see is a simple morphic illusion. Scratch the surface and the true Krillitane lies beneath,” Lassa explained. “And what of the Time Lords? I always thought of you as such a pompous race. Ancient, dusty senators, so frightened of change and... chaos. And of course, they're all but extinct. Only you. The last.”

 

“This plan of yours, what is it?” Harold asked, sparing the Doctor the need to explain.

 

“You don't know,” Lassa said. It wasn't a question for them, it was a statement. “I'd think that someone so close to the Doctor would know.”

 

“That's why I'm asking,” Harold said, suddenly quite agitated.

 

“Well, show me how clever the pair of you are,” Lassa said, moving to face both of them head-on. “Figure it out.”

 

“If I don't like it, I _will_ stop it,” the Doctor threatened.

 

“Fascinating. Your people were peaceful to the point of indolence. You seem to be something new. Would you declare war on us, Doctor?” Lassa taunted.

 

“I'm so old now, I don't have much mercy,” the Doctor muttered angrily. “You get one warning. That was it.”

 

“The next time we meet, you will join me. I promise you,” Lassa said as the Doctor and Harold went to check on the girls.

* * *

Back in the math classroom, Harold was almost immediately at Josephine's side to try and calm her down. Evidently, something Rose had did angered her, because she would never get this angry at Mum. As he tried to calm his sister down, he glared at Rose, who looked dumbfounded and confused.

 

The Doctor glanced between the Smiths and Rose, unsure of what exactly went down between them. Something evidently angered the older Smith child, even so that she had gotten red in the face. Her crystal blue eyes were still burning with anger, an anger the Doctor had only ever seen on one person before. It was unnerving.

 

“How's it going?” the Doctor asked tentatively, glancing between the parties involved cautiously. A huff came from Rose, and a small growl from Josephine.

 

“What?” he muttered in confusion. “Listen, I need to find out what's programmed inside these things.” He took his sonic from the table it had been rest on, pointing it at one of the computers.

 

He was cut off, however, when students began pouring into the school. Harold went out to direct the children away from this particular classroom so they could figure things out.

 

Inside the room, the Doctor had located one of the computer towers, pulling it out from under the desk. He tried running his sonic over it to open it, but nothing happened.

 

“I thought the sonic could open anything,” Sarah Jane frowned.

 

“Anything but a deadlock seal,” the Doctor muttered anxiously. He had very little time to figure this out.

 

As the Doctor tried to figure it out, the computers blinked to life, a green screen full of odd characters and a rotating cube appearing on them.

 

“You wanted the program?” Josephine enquired. “There it is.”

 

The Doctor abandoned the tower in favour of watching the screen of one of the computers. His eyes slowly began to widen in horror as he processed what he was seeing. “No... they can't be,” he muttered anxiously. They couldn't be... shouldn't be... “The Skasis Paradigm They're trying to crack the Skasis Paradigm.”

 

“The Skasis what?” Rose muttered, finally speaking up.

 

“The... the... the God-Maker, the Universal Equation. Crack that, and you have control of the fundamental building blocks of the universe. Time and space and matter at your disposal,” the Doctor explained.

 

“And the kids are what... some kind of supercomputer?” Sarah Jane queried.

 

“Yes,” the Doctor muttered. “And their learning power is being accelerated by the oil! That oil from the kitchens, it works as a... as a... conducting agent. Makes the kids cleverer.”

 

“But that oil's on the chips, and I've been eating the chips,” Rose said suddenly. The twins silently thanked their lack of interesting in fries.

 

“What's 59 times 35?” the Doctor quizzed.

 

“2,065,” Rose answered automatically, eyes widening.

 

“But why use children?” Josephine asked. “Why not use adults?”

 

“No, it's gotta be children. The God-Maker needs imagination to crack it. They're not just using the children's brains to break the code... they're using their souls,” the Doctor muttered abjectly.

 

Behind the group, Lassa walked into the room, hands clasped behind his back. “Think of it, Doctor, with the Paradigm solved, reality becomes clay in our hands. We can reshape the universe, improve it.”

 

“Oh yeah? The whole of creation with the face of Mr Finch. Call me old fashioned, but I like things as they are,” the Doctor said sarcastically, trying to ease the tension in the room.

 

“You act like such a radical, and yet all you want to do is preserve the old order. Think of the changes that could be made if this power was used for good,” Lassa said, walking towards the group.

 

“What, by someone like you?” the Doctor asked skeptically.

 

“No... someone like _you_ ,” Lassa shook his head. The Doctor was struck silent, not knowing how to answer. “The Paradigm gives us power, but you could give us wisdom. Become a God. At my side. Imagine what you could do, think of the civilizations you could save. Perganon, Assinta... your own people, Doctor. Standing tall. The Time Lords... reborn.”

 

“Doctor, don't listen to him,” Sarah Jane said softly, trying to convince her best friend through her eyes.

 

Turning to Rose and Sarah Jane, Lassa spoke again. “And you could be with him throughout eternity. Young, fresh, never wither, never age, never die...” he said, not speaking to one of them in particular, trying to convince at least one, or both. “Their lives are so fleeting... so many goodbyes. How lonely you must be, Doctor. Join us.”

 

The Doctor actually looked like he was considering the idea seriously. Josephine and Harold linked hands out of nervous habit, hoping he didn't go through with it.

 

“I could save everyone...” the Doctor muttered. Romana, Andred, Leela, Narvin, Ace, Braxietal... He could save them from the War, save everyone, including the 2.47 billion children... It was so, so tempting. “I could stop the War...”

 

“No,” Sarah Jane and the twins said as one.

 

“The universe has to move forward. Pain and loss, they define us as much as happiness or love,” Sarah Jane said, moving towards the Doctor. “Whether it's a world or a relationship, everything has its time, and everything ends.”

 

Hearing Sarah Jane's words pulled the Doctor back from the edge. He picked up a chair, throwing it at the large monitor at the front of the room. The screen shatters, glass spraying across the room. “Out!” he growled, making a beeline for the door. Everyone but Lassa followed quickly, getting as far away as they could.

 

The group ran into Mickey and one of the students at the bottom of the staircase. Rose went to say something, but three of the Krillitaine were chasing after them. Turning, everyone booked it away from them.

 

“Are they my teachers?” the student asked, horrified. The Doctor nodded.

 

“Yeah, sorry,” he muttered, not really apologetic at all.

 

The Krillitaine swoop down, landing by the group. “Leave the Doctor. As for the rest, you may feast,” Lassa told his brothers, snarling at the group.

 

Just as Lassa tried to attack, a beam of red energy pierced his chest, causing him to fall to the floor. Sarah Jane and the twins turned, grinning. “K9!” they beamed.

 

“Suggest you engage running mode, Mistresses and Masters,” K9 said, in reference to those he recognized.

 

“C'mon!” the Doctor said hurriedly, running away as K9 continued shooting, downing the other Krillitaine. “K9, hold them back!” he ordered the dog,

 

“Affirmative, Master. Maximum defence mode!” the dog nodded, returning to shooting at the bat people. The Doctor led the group to a classroom, unlocking it with his sonic and getting everyone inside.

 

“Power supply failing,” K9 said as he continued shooting.

 

“Forget the shooty dog thing,” Lassa said, not quite dead yet.

 

“Power supply failing,” K9 repeated, powering down in the middle of the room.

 

In the classroom they had hidden in, the Doctor suddenly had an idea. “The oil! Krillitaine lifeforms can't handle the oil! That's it! They've changed their physiology so often, even their own oil is toxic to them. How much was there in the kitchens?” he asked Rose.

 

“Barrels of it,” Rose answered.

 

“Okay, we need to get to the kitchens,” the Doctor said firmly. “Mickey...”

 

“What now, hold the coats?” Mickey grumbled, looking put-off.

 

“Get all of the children unplugged and out of the school,” the Doctor told him, ignoring the put-off tone. “Now then, bats, bats, bats. How do we fight bats?” he muttered.

 

Mickey took off to get everyone out, leaving the Doctor with Rose, the student, and the Smiths. The student suddenly broke the glass on the fire alarm, pulling the little leaver to set off the noise. The Krillitaine all cowered at the screeching noise, giving the group enough time to get away.

 

Lassa punched the wall, ripping out the wires to cut the noise of the alarm. The Krillitaine slowly regain their composure and fly after the group.

 

Once in the kitchens, the Doctor pulled his sonic on the barrels. K9 had apparently gotten charged and managed to meet them there.

 

Grumbling, the Doctor smacked one of the barrels. “Deadlock sealed!” he groaned. “Finch must've done that. I can't open them.”

“The vats would not withstand a direct hit from my laser,” K9 piped in. “But my batteries are failing.”

 

“Right, everyone out the back door. K9, stay with me,” the Doctor instructed, shooing everyone out of the kitchen.

 

“Capacity for one shot, Master. For maximum impact, I must be placed directly next to the vat,” K9 informed him once everyone was gone.

 

“Bit you'll be trapped inside!” the Doctor said, worry for his friend leaking into his voice.

 

“That is correct,” K9 nodded.

 

“I can't let you do that,” the Doctor said sadly.

 

“No alternative possible, Master,” K9 said. If the robot could be sad, he was sad then.

 

“Goodbye, old friend,” the Doctor muttered sadly, placing K9 next to the vat and leaving the kitchen.

 

“Goodbye, Master,” he heard as he left.

 

“You're a good dog,” the Doctor called back.

 

Once outside, the Doctor went to find the others.

 

“Where's K9?” Sarah Jane asked in a panic.

 

“Yeah,” the twins chorused worriedly.

 

“We need to run,” the Doctor said, avoiding the question.

 

“Where is he?” Sarah Jane asked again. “What have you done?”

 

The Doctor sighed, grabbing Sarah Jane by the hand and tugging her away. He felt bad for what he had to tell her, but it had been K9's choice.

 

The sound of an explosion pierced the air, the school going up in smoke. The children, finding out their classmate had a part in the matter, began cheering. The Doctor and Sarah Jane stood separate from everyone else, the Doctor's arm around Sarah Jane's shoulder comfortingly.

 

“I'm sorry,” he muttered sadly.

 

“It's alright. He was just a daft metal dog. Fine, really,” Sarah Jane lied through her tears. She loved K9 as much as her children. He was their friend. She glanced to the twins, who were comforting each other over the loss of their dog.

* * *

Later, the Doctor invited Sarah Jane and the twins into the TARDIS. Sarah Jane looked around with a faint smile.

 

“You've redecorated,” she noted.

 

“Do you like it?” the Doctor asked.

 

“Oh, I do, yeah,” Sarah Jane nodded. “I liked it the way it was, but it'll do.”

 

The twins and Sarah Jane shared a look. They had been trying to figure out how to tell him something since Sarah Jane realized he was there. It was something personal, something they needed to tell him if they were going to keep running into each other like this.

 

“Doctor...” Sarah Jane muttered softly, wrapping her sweater tighter around herself. Harold stuck his hands in his pockets, and Josephine looked at her hands, which were wringing and fidgeting.

 

The Doctor looked at the trio curiously. Why did they look like they had something to tell him? Did they have something to tell him? “Yes?” he said cautiously, gauging reactions.

 

“There's something we think you should know,” Josephine said softly, looking up at him.

 

“Something important,” Harry added, meeting the Doctor's gaze.

 

“I've been trying to figure out how to tell you since the Death Zone,” Sarah Jane went on, which made the Doctor pause to think. Something she'd been meaning to tell him for decades her time? This had to be something huge. He took a few minutes to think on it before his eyes widened. “Wait...” he muttered. “Are they...?” he trailed off. It was really the only answer. They reminded him of someone he couldn't place. The reason he couldn't place that person had to be because it was _him_.

 

Sarah Jane nodded slowly. “Yeah, yeah they are,” she said quietly. She didn't know what kind of reaction she expected, but the one she got wasn't it. The Doctor's face spread into a wide grin, and he took a few steps to pull all three of them into a tight hug. _Family_ , he had a family. He hadn't had a family in quite some time, and now he had one.

 

“Brilliant,” he muttered when he pulled away. His smile was infectious, spreading to the twins and Sarah Jane.

 

Rose and Mickey, meanwhile, had no idea what was going on. The Doctor's question had gone unfinished, but he apparently got the answer he'd been expecting. The two shared a look, glancing back at the others.

 

“Doctor?” Rose muttered in confusion. “What was... that?”

 

The Doctor's smile never wavered, his brown eyes happy for once. “I guess you two just spent two days with my kids,” he explained cheerfully. Rose nearly choked at that, while Mickey gave the Doctor a 'good job' look.

 

“Your... _kids_?” Rose muttered, trying not to freak out. The Doctor had kids, older than she was by at least ten years. If he had kids that old, she had no chance. No chance at all.

 

Sarah Jane nodded. “It's a... complicated story, involving the Old Girl, some ginger beer, and whiskey,” she said in lieu of an explanation. Rose was still in disbelief, unsure of how to respond to that. She knew there'd been something more than friendship between the Doctor and Sarah Jane, and this just proved it.

 

Suddenly, the Doctor spoke again, grin still on his face. “Hey, why don't you two join us for an adventure or two? Give you the proper experience.”

 

The twins exchanged a look, blue eyes full of excitement.

 

“If you'll have us, we'd love to!” Josephine said happily. Mum had told them so many stories about the adventures she'd had, and now they were being offered the chance to go on a few with the Doctor. It was too good of a chance to pass up.

 

Sarah Jane smiled at the sight of her children so excited. “Well, I'll get out of your hair then,” she chuckled, stepping out of the TARDIS. The Doctor followed after her, wanting to see her off.

 

“I guess this is goodbye, Doctor. For now,” Sarah Jane smiled.

 

“I guess it is,” the Doctor nodded.

 

“Please, just say it. Just this once,” Sarah Jane muttered. She needed to hear it.

 

“Goodbye, my Sarah Jane,” the Doctor said with a smile, pulling Sarah Jane into a hug that brought her off of the ground. When she made contact with the ground again, the Doctor placed a soft kiss to the top of her head and headed back to the TARDIS.

 

As the TARDIS dematerialized with that dying elephant screech, Sarah Jane noticed something in its place.

 

“K9!” she beamed, moving to kneel next to her dog.


End file.
